On Sun, 5 Sep 2010 20:27:13 +0700
<davian818@gmail.com> wrote:
> Why Debian maintainers never generate pot files in source packages?
This generalisation is undeserved. There are packages that contain up
to date POT files in the source package - I maintain several. However,
it does need to be only some which package the POT file.
> It makes translation very difficult, not surprising no-one interested
> in translation.
The POT file should not always be in the source package because that is
too late. The POT file should be sent out for updates before the source
package is uploaded.
> Is there some policy which controls that?
Source packages are a form of string freeze, so it can be useful to
prepare and update POT files in the build process. What is not
generally useful is for packages to contain POT files, receive PO
translations and then find that so much has changed in the POT for the
next, unreleased, version that most of the translated strings for the
"current" version already in the archive are thrown away.
Translators don't want their work discarded, upstream don't want to
waste time putting in PO files which are already out of date.
Therefore, putting a POT file in the source package can be precisely
the WRONG thing to do.
What needs to be done is a call for translations *before* the release,
giving time for all updated translations to be received and then the
package released and uploaded with as many translations updated as
possible. When the POT file changes, another string freeze, another
call and the package gets uploaded with updated strings already in
place.
Therefore, I think you should think this through more carefully.
Blindly enforcing that all source packages which support l10n also
include the POT file is counter-productive. Encouraging *some* to
include POT files once the package is in a state that the strings don't
change that much any more is good. Encouraging maintainers to allow time
for a genuine string freeze and make a call for translations, including
the updated translations in the actual release, is a FAR BETTER idea.
Don't look to source packages to contain POT files - look to encourage
maintainers to seek updated PO translations *before* release / upload
by sending the updated POT to the relevant mailing lists.
$ podebconf-report-po --notdebconf --call
--
Neil Williams
=============
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